Words Unspoken
by RivaMikaDailyDose
Summary: The deep inflection of her cries. Or the blood curdling screams that recoils from the depth of her larynx before she is tossed around like a crippled doll between unfamiliar men with corrupted desires. Lost and ridden of any sentiments or value to her name. Rivamika / Rikasa / Levi and Mikasa
1. Chapter 1

It is a cold and barren wasteland, she remembers.

Traces of life or comfort is beyond this bitter darkness that confines her body, whole and unrelenting. Only murky grounds and foreign men dragging her between tied ropes and coerced thrashing surrounding her to those who retaliate and pursue escape.

But there is no getaway or freedom that exists in this hell. She knows this. Her overtaxed body branded this affliction in her mind, so she could not forget where her place stood in this merciless world.

This cruelty of life worn on the sleeve of her cleaved and tousled shirt, retaining her voice from ever being reached.

_It's useless._

**— —**

The deep inflection of her cries. Or the blood curdling screams that recoils from the depth of her larynx before she is tossed around like a crippled doll between unfamiliar men with corrupted desires. Lost and ridden of any sentiments or value to her name.

Being abandoned and humiliated, she believes, is what she is good for. That is the purpose for her forgotten little existence.

She has no voice. It doesn't exist in _their _world.

They robbed her clean of that. Breathing, sleeping, and waking. Any person could do that. She is existing, certainly, but that is not enough to claim herself as a suited human being in this world.

She is forced to survive in the pits of her own oblivion. Neither seeking warmth or solace for herself.

She is—

_Alone…_

**_—_**

With a heavy sigh and seemingly, tight knitted brows, Erwin finds himself surrounded in the midst of the crowd of civilians that placidly passes him by. Jerking their eyes on his form for a split second, before avoiding his presence all together. A gesture that he was well accustomed to within the walls.

He wonders if he stands out with his sudden appearance between the cluster. Dressed with his green cloak, refined suit tucked underneath, and naturally, his dainty golden hair slicked back to his favor. Though, between the brusque sun and his heavily draped uniform, it is certain that he is nearly exhausted from the scorching heat glazing over his built structure.

"Look mommy, it's the Commander!" A little boy cries in awe and admiration.

"Don't pay attention to him." She hushes the little boy and grabs his hand in a forceful manner. "All they do is waste our tax money on their pointless expeditions and come back with just more dead bodies." She glares, before turning her back and escaping from his latency.

He stays silent, having grown to the insults and hushed whispering directed towards him and the Survey Corps. It was to be expected after all. Their previous expeditions have proven to be ineffective and the expanse of dead bodies increased way beyond his expectancy within the past few months. There were just not enough obtained information on the Titans to further conduct on new formations or efficient maneuvering defenses. Guaranteeing the lives of his soldiers, was without doubt, something he could not promise.

Glancing around once and then twice, he pivots his heels and saunters on along with an abiding pace, while ensuing in search for his two subordinates, which, he might add, decided to stray from his side once arriving into town.

"Hurry up and find her!"

Steeling in his stead, Erwin takes a short glimpse of two men in apprehensive clothing. Taking note of the apparent shackles hanging loosely from their pockets as they rummage through the crowded streets in frantic movements.

"You fucking dipshit! Why'd you take your eyes off of her?" One of them barks, breaking into a cold sweat.

"She needed to piss so I let the little bitch go!"

"If we don't find her, your head is coming off. And I'm not talking about the one on your fucking shoulders either!"

Letting out a heavy sigh, Erwin disregards the blatant men and continues walking ahead, allowing his mind to wander into tactful deliberation on his contrived strategies before discussing the upcoming expedition with the other officers within the military branch.

Knowing the council, his unsuccessful expeditions have caught their immediate attention, and whether he steps down as Commander or not, is rightfully in their verdict. However, even the superiors understand that he is not a man to give up so easily. Especially when he is their last hope of regaining back any last bit of humanity that's left. Standing down, that term does not exist to him.

_Thud._

Quickly abandoning his thoughts. He glances down and notices a young girl, around the age of thirteen or fourteen, he assumes, sprawled along the murky ground— clouded hues resembling lifeless shells, neither comforting or simmering with any traces of color in them. Completely devoid from any sorts of emotion or value in the depths.

"Are you alright?" He asks, kneeling down to her figure. "I'm at fault here, so please inform me if you're injured—"

She scoots away. Her mouth adjusting into a somber line.

Erwin arches an eyebrow and takes a deeper speculation at her profile. Though, if he is expecting an average girl in her teens, he is gravely mistaken.

Raven hair is tousled into exhausting knots, while her physique is abnormally thin to bear fit of a typical girl at her age. He scrutinizes further and notices apparent bones protruding from her body—mostly covered in bruises and open wounds, which, if he is correct, seems to be from whipping and constant abuse, in regards to how fresh they appear.

He feels his stomach twist and turn in nauseation as he continues surveying the girl.

"Who did this?" He suddenly demands, feeling a twinge of anger building up inside of him.

It's not usual for him to break his calm countenance but _this_. This girl he sees in front of him. It disgusts him. The condition she's in. The fresh open wounds and the copious bruises that layers over what's left of her fair skin. It makes him wonder if she's even alive at this point.

The girl stays silent. Hugging her knees together tightly.

"Are you lost?" He tries again.

Nothing.

_How do I communicate to her…_

He brings a finger to his chin in thought.

_Wait. That's it._

He rummages through his pockets in a swift movement. Taking out a fancy pen garnished in gold, which he received from one of his subordinates a few months back, and offers his hand out to her.

"Use this to talk." He nods his head, leaning forward but still maintaining a safe distance between them. "I have no paper unfortunately, but perhaps it can be used on the ground."

She just stares at him for a second, before glancing down at the pen.

Erwin places it on the ground and steps away slowly. "I won't hurt you." He reassures her, bracing himself against a wall. "So let me hear your voice."

And in that moment, he swore he could hear her cries between the words that escaped from the tip of the pen.

_Help me please._

It was something he was not prepared for.

**—**

"Erwin! We finally found you! Where have you—" Hanji halts in her sentence, slowly adjusting the glasses on the bridge of her nose. "Commander, I'm not sure how to tell you this but," she pauses for a fraction of a second, "there's a girl under your cloak." She points at the bulge sticking out from the side.

Mike begins sniffing immediately and cringes his forehead at the putrid smell transpiring from the Commander. "And she smells."

Erwin sighs heavily and lifts the cloak to reveal the lifeless girl. "Human traffickers." He glances down at her stilled form. "She escaped and I ran into her on my way to the meeting."

Hanji suddenly becomes intrigued and begins to survey the timid girl.

"Weight just below average. Skin torn and bruised from shackles and whipping. Pupils deprived of sentiment and I'm putting this out there, but it seems she's unable to speak to anybody." Hanji inquires, taking a deeper inspection at her figure. "She hasn't spoken a word and usually when being in a situation like this, most kids would scream or explain what the problem is but she's staying silent."

"As expected of you Hanji." Erwin nods in compliance. "I'm sure her vocal chords are properly working. But it's possible that she's dramatized due to the effects of what they conducted on her or in her case," he clenches his jaws, "what they made her do."

"Well Commander, what are you going to do with her? Surely you're not thinking of leaving her to rot in that place."

"I have no intentions on bringing her back."

"So you're putting her under adoption then?" Mike asks, eyeing the Commander closely.

Erwin flickers his eyes at the girl, noticing her hands shaking uncontrollably. "I suppose that will be the case." He shrugs off the green cloak from the length of his shoulders and wraps it around her body. "I'll look after her."

Both squad leaders gape in unison.

"You're joking right?"

"If I do recall, you already have a kid back at headquarters." Mike says, arching an eyebrow.

"Levi, yes, I presume he won't mind having company."

"That's if he doesn't wreak havoc by the time we get back. He sure is rebellious for a kid his age." Hanji snorts in return. "I still don't understand what crossed your mind to bring back a thug kid like him from underground." She stares at him with a scrutinizing gaze.

Erwin lets out a deep chuckle and brings his forefinger to his chin. "He may have a bad mouth and cause a bit of trouble, but he carries a strong resolve on his shoulders," he hesitates, probing his blue eyes deeply,"I'm certain he'll make an exceptional soldier when he matures."

"Hope so chief." She replies in a spiritly voice. "Man, I'm starving!"

"We should head back already." Mike cuts in, glancing up at the setting sun.

"It has gotten late hasn't it? Let's report back to the council first thing in the morning. I'm sure they're quite infuriated by my absence." Erwin let out a heavy sigh, folding his arms across his chest. "As for now, we need to find her a place to sleep and something edible to eat."

Mikasa stares up at him for a protracted moment before sliding her eyes back down to her feet. She lifts both of her shaky hands and tugs tenderly on to the soft fabric that blanketed around her figure.

"Let's go." Erwin smiles, placing his hand on the crown of her head. "To our home."

She blinks a few times and swallows the words in.

_Home… Our home.._

And in that moment, it was like a tiny flame ignited within her body. Giving her a new kind of warmth in the depth of her hollow chest. She felt alive. A feeling that crashed into her without forewarning. It was _beautiful_. Her world was becoming beautiful before she knew it.

_Let's go to our home.._

_(To be continued..)_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: IMPORTANT. Levi is about seventeen in this story. He comes off as an asshole, but expect a character development as the story goes on. Mikasa's age will be mentioned somewhere along the line. Anyways, I hope you enjoy since this is my first story back from the road of of sickness. **

—

—

—

It was nearly close to sun down before Levi began to notice just how empty and particularly abandoned the Commander's office was. Usually, on simple days like these, the overly busy bastard would be stationed behind his desk, eyes strictly glued to paperwork— or just about anything related to those self-arrogant pigs that showered him with tons of irrelevant bullshit that needed to be signed— none of those said men for that matter, having no mentality or common sense and duty to actually do their own work.

It was officers like that, which made the military branches seem like a whole joke to him.

Survey Corps, Military police, and his personal favorite; the Garrison's, who did none other than: get drunk off their asses and get respect from the civilians for doing something so easy, even a poor kid off the streets could do it. Protecting the towns and reinforcing the walls?Direct attacks from the Titans within the span of a single damn year just proved how futile it was. What type of worth did they possess if they couldn't even do a simple job? If that didn't describe just how useless they were, Levi didn't know what the hell would.

And he didn't even want to get started with Erwin. Personally, he hated the bastard for everything he was worth. The man was just as pointless as all of them. Always trying to continue forth, or thinking of newer ways to attack— even if he came back with fewer less men than he began with— it always managed to piss Levi off more than he would like to think. What was he proving? That he could possibly save humanity? If there was a sick joke to ever exist in this shit-filled world of theirs, that would be it.

If he was ignorant enough to follow through with that tactic each and every time, death would be knocking on his door very soon. Probably once the Titans manage to breach through Wall Sina; just as they have with Wall Maria, and Wall Rose. The clock was ticking, and Erwin would soon be running out of time.

Not that Levi cared. He opposed the man like anything else around him.

He hated him, because naturally, after the damn bastard had rescued him and his friends from the sudden collapsing of the underground rocks, he was indebted to the man. And just as how shitty fate particularly fell upon them that day, so did the rest of his life once he brought them in.

Talk about getting the short end of the stick.

"Levi, you are to return to your quarters. The instructions the Commander left behind strictly states—"

"To hell with his instructions," Levi interrupted sharply, his mouth remaining to cast in downward tilt. He was hungry, and he needed answers. And if he couldn't get just about that, then he would much rather seek the attention instead of just waiting. Hell, wherever trouble seemed to start, Erwin managed to follow after. It was like a game of cat and mouse. Only, Erwin would be chasing after him this time. "Reika, is it?" he pointed towards the name tag on her vest, "how about we forget about his orders and you inform me on where the hell that bastard went."

The woman froze, just as he expected. "Sorry, you are restricted from knowing the source of his location. Now please go back to your room as ordered."

"And if I don't? I'm curious on what sort of technique you'll use. Perhaps you'll spar with me, or better yet," Levi snuck a sideways glance. One that respectfully translated into: _Don't fucking mess with me right now, _"seduce me into going back to my chambers. How about it soldier? It seems you have enough practice with all of the other men around here, no shame in trying it with me."

"That is enough!" She shouted. "I will use any force by means to have you retreat back. Just because the Commander adopted you, doesn't serve you any right to run your mouth. You're just a junior half our age and we're ordered to watch over you? What a joke." She finished with a glare.

She was boiling, and Levi was unimpressed.

"Then don't do it. If you can't handle a simple task, you're not fit to be a solider. Quite frankly, it would do us all a damn solid if you'd shut your mouth and perhaps what you got down there as well," he flickered his eyes down for just a moment before meeting her glare again, "and leave while you're at it."

"Excuse me?"

"That's odd. I thought I made myself clear?" His eyes narrowed almost precisely. If looks could kill, his would have done a fine job of doing so.

The woman seemed to get the point, yet, she still made no movement to leave. Which, to his disappointment, made matters more nerving on his part. Instead of departing, the woman grounded her teeth and pulled out one of her blades—most likely to inform him that she was anything but joking now.

"Ah, fine choice Reika. What do you plan to do? Slaughter me in his office? I suggest you start with my neck. The more blood, the better. Erwin fancies the color red I've heard."

"You're s-sick!"

"Some may say. But I like to think of myself as comical."

"I will repeat myself," she gritted out, "go back to your room before you regret it." She stepped closer.

Levi was rather getting bored of this act. If it weren't for his sick amusement, he would have retreated by now. But being stuck in a place full of depressing soldiers did nothing but irritate him into causing more trouble. And he was not one to disappoint.

"You have fine caliber, I admit." He shrugged, thinking of a way to continue on with it. "But you lack something very important Reika." Levi met each step forward, until he was face to face with the sharp blade pressed against the hollow of his neck.

"And what's that?" She asked, curious to his speculation.

Levi merely smirked. "Courage." He simply stated. A trickle of warm blood suddenly spilled over, descending down the cold surface of her blade like it was coating the frayed silver with his indirect warning. The woman jumped back immediately, grasping the blade with her as she went.

"W-Why did you—"

"If you hesitate to attack, your life is good as gone. Important lesson to remember Reika. But don't take it to heart, it was only just a joke." He lifted the back of his hand and wiped the short line of blood from his neck. "You can stop shaking now. I'll return, so quit with the waterworks."

The woman just blinked, not noticing the hot droplets that were escaping from her eyes. Levi sighed, displeased. He was a cold-hearted bastard, he agreed, but the sight of a woman crying still affected him, more than he'd care to admit. And even Levi knew his joke had gone too far this time.

"Here." He held out his handkerchief, trying to divert his eyes away. "Use it. I don't need it anymore."

The woman stared up at him, confused. But took the handkerchief despite claiming how she didn't like the man. "T-Thank you."

Levi held up his hand and retreated from the office.

That was another thing that he hated. Appreciation.

Something like that was how he got here in the first place.

—

—

—

It wasn't long before Erwin and the rest reached the base of headquarters from their tiresome and unexpected journey back from town. Mikasa was still hanging almost loosely from Erwin's back, and Hanji and Mike were just as bad company as the neighing horses behind.

"I'm curious, just how are you able to smell such a tiny scent from miles away? Please indulge me with this secret." Hanji pestered, literally shoving her nose into the crook of Mike's neck. "Seriously tell me!"

"Give it a rest Hanji." Erwin sighed tiredly. He was just as curious as she was, but questioning the man would just lead her into more pointless theories and most likely create another mess of experiments which he would be solely respoinsible for.

But Mike being Mike, he was slightly interested with her inquiries. Rather, he gave a look of arrogance, like he was the best specimen to ever existed in her eyes.

"What can I say? It's just a natural thing."

"Natural? C'mon! Give me more than that! You know I won't leave it at that."

"Hanji." Erwin warned.

"I was born with it. So I can't really go into depth on how or why I obtained a heightened sense of smell. Just leave it at that." Mike replied, almost too proudly. His voice didn't match well with the smug grin on his face.

Hanji squealed happily, and Erwin slumped.

His efforts were going to waste. So he'd rather just stop trying now before he wore himself out.

"Ah, Mikasa look!" Hanji pointed. "This will be your new home—well if this counts as a home I suppose."

Erwin glanced to the side, noticing how the girl lifted her head towards the direction of where they were heading.

A flicker of fear crossed her features. It wasn't much of what he expected, but he must admit, headquarters didn't exactly look… homely to others.

"It's not what you'd expect, but you're safer here than you are anywhere else." Erwin reassured, a smile etching at his lips.

The girl nodded her head and resumed into silence.

"Perhaps this is uncomfortable for you? If you'd like, I could put you down and—"

The girl gripped tightly onto his green cloak and shook her head in response. Erwin smiled and nodded.

"Then we will presume." He affirmed with finality.

They were quickly greeted with a couple of guards—a chat passing between each about the meeting and such, before they went about their way and headed straight through the gates, leading them inside the core of headquarters, just beyond the fenced walls covering the outing.

Their welcoming wasn't how he would imagine for the girl. It didn't take long before word got around and soldiers began lining up, one after another, stances straight and rigid like they had just come back from war.

And it was then, he noticed Mikasa peeking out in curiosity.

"Interested?" He asked.

A slight rush of color to her cheeks was enough to tell him that his intuition was right. Like most, a lot of people who weren't familiar with the Survey Corps found interest with the formation of his soldiers or the building of headquarters, itself. It was fascinating in all its' entirety, and Erwin would be lying if he said he wasn't proud of being the one to maintain it.

Of course, he would never say it, but he felt it very well whenever he had the chance to appreciate the beauty.

"Commander! May I have a word?" One of the elite soldiers came running. The look on his face was enough for him to understand just exactly what he dreaded to hear.

"Levi?"

The man stopped in his tracks and nodded immediately.

"Right now I'm busy for the moment. Whatever the issue may be, I'll tend to it once I see him again."

"But sir—"

"Later."

"You don't understand. He's coming."

"Now?"

"Now." The man gulped.

Just as the solider predicted, Levi came heading towards their direction with an almost deadly expression.

"Levi, I don't have time to be—"

"Listen here bastard, I haven't eaten anything since noon besides bread and soup. Bread and soup for goddamn sake. And where have you been? Because of your disappearance, it seemed a bunch of these old fucks decided it was necessary to trash the place."

Erwin lifted a brow. "They? Or do you mean you?" He was hardly believing anything that was coming out of his mouth. And somehow, that seemed to piss Levi off more.

"Tch. Always the one to point the finger Erwin. Impressive of you."

"I am right, after all."

"Right, my ass."

"Don't cuss. It's inadequate."

"Lighten up. Don't have such a stick up your ass."

"Levi." Erwin warned. "Don't cuss." He was already at his limit with this boy. One more word and he wasn't sure if he would be able to restrain himself any longer. It was a long, tiring day, and all he wanted was a hot bath and a proper meal to go with it. Not a raging, hormonal teen with no restriction to his name.

"Bad day? Well tough luck. You're not— mmpf!"

"Excuse his rudeness sir. It seems he's suffering from a mental illness." Farlan trapped Levi's mouth with the palm of his hand. "He's more agitated at this hour. So I'll bring him back to his room."

"Right, sir! Leave it to us! We'll take care of Mr. Cranky for now." Isabel followed after with a smile.

Without these two to handle the boy's temper, he's sure he would have lost his mind already from the madness.

"Thank you. Isabel. Farlan." He nodded to them both. "While you're at that, please tend to Mikasa's injuries."

They both looked at him confused. "Mikasa?"

It was then when Erwin realized he had long forgotten about the girl on his back. "Ah, yes. Mikasa, can I put you down now?" He glanced sideways.

The girl bit her cheek nervously, but nodded anyways.

Erwin slowly, carefully, with a precise shift, kneeled down and dropped his tight grip from the girl's legs. She slid off without much given movement and stood awkwardly behind his back, her hands still attached to his cloak.

"This girl here is Mikasa. Her age is still unknown at the moment, though I presume she's around the age of 14-16, give or take. There might be an issue with her vocal chords, due to the immense abuse she's taken, as you can see." He pointed at her with unease. It wasn't every day he presented a half-starved, practically beaten down girl to a whole crowd. "Information regarding who or where she got the beatings from is still out of our reach. Though, as Hanji and I have guessed, it's most likely dealing with slave trading."

The soldiers around quickly began to whisper. Eyes strictly glued to the barely standing girl, and fingers pointing directly towards the bruises and cuts showing on the surface of her skin.

_"That's so horrible…"_

_"Who would do such a thing…"_

_"That's the underground for ya. You can never be too safe around the streets…"_

_"Glad I'm in this game. Seems to harsh to be out there during this war against the Titans.."_

The whisperings continued, reaching everyone's ears as they went; one by one, until finally, the hushed gossiping reached Mikasa's ears like a whirlpool of words sucking her in.

"Shut up. All of you."

It was abrupt and demanding. Ceasing the chatter immediately with just a few words. It was almost akin to that of a forest fire being wiped out by a raging storm.

All eyes, which was once directed towards the girl, was now reaching Levi like he was some sort of unorthodox animal between the masses of soldiers. Curiosity along the crowd, and a search for an explanation to be found.

And as far as Erwin could see, the boy was willing to give them just that. Only in his own personal Levi way.

"Did I hit a nerve or something? Hell, if you got something to say, say it directly."

Well, he expected a response like that coming from him. Even if it created more harm than none.

"That won't be necessary." Erwin intervened. "As a matter of fact, it's past curfew." The tight knit of his brows was enough to alert the soldiers of his loss of patience, and soon enough, they were all on their merry way towards the barracks—entirely too frightened from the thick tension to speak another word.

"Now that we're clear of problems," Erwin glanced at Levi and sighed. Well, the exception of one anyways. "We should hurry along inside and wash up."

Mikasa just stood there, uneased. Her mouth trembling in either fright or anxiety—more or so both— Erwin deducted, crossing his arms.

"Once you're done with the orders I've given, I need you both to walk her back to my chambers. It seems I'm the only one she's come to trust."

"Very well, sir." Farlan replied.

"We'll take good care of her!" Isabel promised.

"She reeks of death." Levi remarked, crinkling his nose in turn.

Erwin slid a glare before softly latching both hands onto the girl's shoulders.

"Okay, Mikasa." He gave her a warm smile. Hopefully one that would at least give her some sort of comfort for the night. "These people are going to treat your wounds and wash you up. No need to be frightened, they mean no harm to you." He spoke firmly, but with assurance.

Mikasa glanced back and forth between Farlan and Isabel, before resting her eyes onto Levi. She hid even further behind Erwin, in proof that she was nothing but afraid of the boy.

"What? She's looking at me like I'm some sort of disease." Levi narrowed his eyes.

"Well, she's not too far off the mark then." Farlan chuckled. "You don't really present a, '_hey let's get along_' type of vibe, so to speak."

"Oh fuck off. If I did that, I would attract homo's. Surprisingly, I somehow managed to reel you in, bastard."

"You don't hate me that bad, do you pal?" Farlan gripped his shoulders tightly, earning himself a scowl.

"That's an understatement. I hate you more than you realize. And don't call me pal, you shit. We're nothing more if acquaintances."

"Levi is quite modest when it comes to us." Isabel spoke warmly to the girl. "You'll get use to it if you ignore his bad temper."

"Oi!" Levi pointed accusingly to the woman. "Don't go off teaching her useless things. And since when am I modest? You and Farlan can literally just go fuck off for all I care." He grumbled to himself.

Isabel gave the girl a, '_See, I told you_' look, before grabbing Mikasa's hand immediately and waving off towards the Commander as he made his way back inside.

"Now, let's wash up okay?"

Mikasa merely nodded and hid behind Isabel in replacement of Erwin.

Levi glanced at her, displeased. "I don't like her." He stated bluntly. "She's too timid. Like a ticking bomb waiting to go off."

"And you're any better?" Farlan retorted. "At least she's quiet, unlike you."

"Ohoh? Seems you're confident on wanting to lose your balls for the night Farlan. That's strike two by the way."

"Yeah yeah."

They all walked inside together; Farlan and Levi going on and about in their argument, while Isabel simply ignored the bickering duo with a pleasing smile, and Mikasa, while in her silent condition, somehow managed to find some sort of warmth from the odd trio.

It was like a dream to her, only these people beside her were real. Tangible. And within her reach.

For once, she could almost believe that her voice was reached.

And what should have been a darkened, barren maze, suddenly turned into a bright, crowded environment in which she could just finally… breathe.

—

—

—

Levi could agree he wasn't particularly fond of people. Especially Erwin. But somehow, after coming across that battered looking girl, he found her to be more bothersome than most.

_Why? _The question itself was still a mystery.

Maybe it was the stench of death that transpired from her clothes, or the way she hid whenever she was confronted with another human being, but whatever it was, it annoyed Levi, and for some particular reason, he couldn't exactly understand why she did.

Just the look of her made him want to be in another room. Rather, in a different building. Somewhere where she wasn't in, if that relieved him of this wave of uneasiness.

He didn't like it. And he'd rather stay away from her.

But who was he if he didn't make a self introduction? They say first impressions are always important. And he would definitely show her the type of person he was and why most people wouldn't dare to cross grounds with him.

He liked to think of it as a warning. In case she hasn't figure it out yet.

"Mikasa is it?" Levi spoke with absolute dryness. Farlan and Isabel were out gathering medical utensils, so he decided now of all times would be best to introduce himself.

Well, before they came back that is. His introduction were usually short and to the point anyways.

The girl just nodded timidly and said not a single word.

_Annoying_, Levi agreed with his own thoughts.

Continuing on, Levi came closer but preserved just enough distance to make her feel comfortable… that is if she was even comfortable within his presence.

He assumed, not.

"You don't speak right? Huh, seems those slave traders showed no mercy to you."

Nothing. Not even a change of expressions.

So he pressed on further. "Let's be clear here. Just because that bastard Erwin said to play nice with you, doesn't mean I'm planning on doing exactly that. He adopted you? Great. Don't involve me in your little shitty game of _House_. Simply put, I don't like you one bit."

Silence, which he expected. But her expression… she was empty. Not even a blink of an eye to his statement.

Annoyed, Levi didn't stop there. Instead, he just continued with an even more deathly glare.

"You really are a mute. Girls like you don't belong in a place like this." He gritted out between clenched teeth. It seemed his message was getting to her, because the slight movement on her part did not go unnoticed.

"Ah, so that's it." He smirked, hitting the jackpot. "Your voice. It was taken away by those men I assume? I could only imagine what they did to you, or how many." He crossed his arms, finding a new source of amusement from this girl. "Good riddance right? I bet your voice wasn't even that—" Levi stopped, then sighed.

It was a matter of time, he exhaled sharply. Tears strung out from the corner of her eyes. Almost begging to be let out, but it didn't. It stayed stuck, almost as if she wasn't allowed to cry.

And for the life of him, Levi didn't know why. Why it bothered him so much, or why he felt…guilty.

"Don't cry—_damn it_, I mean you can cry… just, I didn't mean it okay? Forget what I said about your voice." It was an excuse from his part. Probably a way for him to rid himself of the guilt that was coiling in the pit of his stomach.

Whether what he said stood true or not, Levi agreed he didn't want to know.

"Are you going to cry or not? It's bad enough if you can't talk…" He stared into her eyes, and almost wished he hadn't.

Because for a moment, in that damn moment their eyes met, it was clear as day to him. It was like he understood.

"You weren't allowed to cry, so you forced yourself to stop." It wasn't far off as a question. More of a statement which, from the look of her expression, seemed to hold true.

And at that, whatever guilt he had felt earlier, seemed to be heightened even more.

"Shit." He scratched the back of his head. "I didn't mean—" He closed his eyes and gripped his fists. Why was he trying to explain to the girl? It's not like he had too.

But in some odd sense, he needed too. Because if he didn't, he would just be another shitty excuse of a man to that girl and the thought of that didn't sit well with him.

"Look kid," he spoke with inflection. "If someone says you can't cry, you tell them to go fuck themselves. If someone tries to…touch you, you hit them twice as hard. And if some ass like me says you're a mute, you kick him in the crotch. Got it? Stick up for yourself for once. It's annoying to have people look out for you, might as well stick it to them and look out for yourself."

Levi didn't know where it came from, or just how comforting it was supposed to sound, but he hoped it came through to her.

"I'm Levi," he slanted his eyes away. "People hate me because I'm mostly a sarcastic dick, but it beats them liking me for being an easy-going, prissy boy like Farlan."

Her eyes wavered for a moment; Levi took a sharp intake.

It seemed like a calm before the storm, and it was certainly something he did not sign up for.

"M-M-Mikasa." It was barely audible, but he heard it.

She spoke, and if he was expecting for her voice to sound rough or hoarse, he was disappointed.

He would never admit it, but It was probably the most beautiful sound to ever reach his ears, and that was number two on his list on why he was set on hating the girl.

Yep, it was definitely the calm before the storm.

"Progress." He shrugged, indifferently.

_[To Be Continued…]_


End file.
